A Different Start
by EnchantingNightmares
Summary: A twist on Ash's journey. Involves a more intellectual Ash, different Pokemon, and a new story. All constructive criticism is accepted.


**A Different Start**

**Chapter One**

**No Current Pairings**

**No Specific Point of View**

**Warning: Horrendous Grammar and Possible Spelling Mistakes**

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Dawn broke early in the small town of Pallet, Kanto. The orange sun gently rose over the trees of the small forest-surrounded town on one side and the fading silver moon was descending down on the other side. Red and yellow leaves had began to fall off their branches and gently sailed downwards. It all seemed as though it was a picture perfect morning. Except for the big shout of "HELLS YEAH!" piercing through the silence. The leaves crunched then crumbled on the ground as each were stepped on.

Ash Ketchum is a boy at the age of thirteen. He had an unquenchable thirst for knowledge that accompanied his undeniable love for all creatures. He would got out and find any Pokemon that he found in the wild that was injured and took them all home with him, despite his mother's wishes for him to keep them out of the house. Sometimes, he would even sneak on to the farm over at Professor Oak's laboratory, and play with all the Pokemon that was being kept inside the gates for the trainer's safe keeping. Whenever coming in contact with a new species, he would go to the public library to read and read and read everything and all about them. Wanting to know every detail, he would spend hours on end cooped up in a small study carol.

But, Pokemon wasn't Ash's only passion. He liked to hang around and be a normal kid like all the others. He would go in to the streets and play baseball with his best friend Gary and other children in the neighborhood. He was someone who could not stay still for a moment, he always had to be doing something.

When Ash had finally set eyes on his destination, his feet seemed to have pick up more unused energy. He flew up the tall hill, raced past the small windmill that accompanied the building, and the stopped in front of the green painted door. After taking a few short puffs of air to calm himself down, he straightened out his back and knocked calmly. He waited sixteen seconds before he knocked again. His patience was running thin. The straightness of his back began to deteriorate as more and more time went by. By now, a visible twitch was throbbing in his left eye. He knocked for the third time, hoping that someone would hear him.

When the door swung open, Ash started to even out his back again. A large grin plastered his face as the man stepped out of the doorway wearing pajamas and yawning in to his hand. "Hello Ash," he said while moving his hand from his mouth to rub his finger against his right eye, "You're... early."

Ash continued to grin, although it started to fall in to a sheepish looking awkward smile. He scratched the back of his neck nervously. "Sorry Professor Oak, I'm just too excited."

Oak rolled his eyes before giving a hint of a smile. He completely understood where Ash was coming from. "Of course you are. Did you even have anything to eat for breakfast?" he asked. When Ash answered him, he welcomed the young boy inside to join him.

Professor Oak went off to change in to day clothes while Ash stayed seated in a dining chair. He had set a place for himself across from the professor and waited for him to return. He thought through what might happen today and how it would affect tomorrow. "My number one choice is Charmander of course, but Squirtle would also be a great choice. Then there was Bulbasaur to think about.

"All very excellent choices they are as well," Professor Oak's voiced as he walked back in to the room. His hair was now neatly combed down and a white lab coat covered his his red shirt and tan khakis. He gave a soft smile as he sat down across from the young boy. Placing a napkin neatly in his lap, he continued on speaking. "All three have there strengths and their weakness'. But, if trained correctly, then all can become very powerful."

Ash nodded at him. Of course, he already knew this, everyone in the world knew this. However, he respected the Professor very much and held him on such a high pedestal, he didn't want to seem rude. He would listen to the professor go on all day if he could, everything he said was fascinating and the small poems he'd come up with amused him as well.

The two had finished eating about a half of an hour later. The two stood up and Ash went to take the sticky, leftover maple-syrup filled plated, but the Professor stopped him. "Don't worry about that, my boy. I'll have my assistant get it later," he said winking mischievously. Ash chuckled, the Professor was a cool guy.

Ash had followed the Professor through various hallways in his lab. He was eventually lead in to a room labeled _Research and Development_ where inside was all kinds of books varying in thickness, papers scattered everywhere, and a table in the center of the room with three Pokeballs sitting on the top. His brown eyes began to sparkle. Inside one of those capsules, his new partner – slash – best friend was occupying.

Professor Oak looked at the boy in amusement before chuckling softly. He remembered when it was time to get his first Pokemon. He was as excited as the boy standing beside him seemed to be, eager to see the world and was ready to obtain any experience and knowledge thrown his way. He didn't want to keep the boy waiting any longer.

When the Professor had let all three Pokemon out of their balls, his heart leaped up in to his throat. The first released was a small dinosaur plant with mint green skin and darker patches of green freckles scattered around on his body. It had big red eyes that seemed to pierce through the very core of a person. The second was a small turtle with blue skin and a brown/yellow shell. It had a big smile on its face as he began to jump up and down when he saw the boy, making Ash giggle a bit. Finally, the last was a small lizard that had orange skin and a creamy white belly. At the end of its long tail was a bright flame that shone enthusiastically.

Bulbasaur.

Squirtle.

Charmander.

All three ended up being some of the best of the best in the world. _If trained correctly_ the Professor's voice echoed in his head.

Before the boy could say anything, the door to the room slammed open, causing all the occupants in the room to jump highly. "Gramps!" a voice called out, "I'm here for my Pokemon!"

Ash sighed. Gary Oak was the Professor's grandson and took any opportunity he could to make that known. He was loud, obnoxious, and arrogant. But, he was still Ash's best friend. The two had grown up together and that had given Ash enough time to see past the small facade off spoiled perfection he put up.

Gary looked around the room. "Ashy boy!" he called.

Though, Ash could do without the nickname.

"You're up early! Didn't think that you would beat me here," he said, and meant it. Ashy boy could go days just sleeping away in bed. When the two had sleepovers, it would take hours for Ash to get up in the morning and nothing would wake him. Gary tried. He slept like the dead, his friend did.

Ash just shrugged at his friend before giving a slight smile. He knew that Gary would be here today as well and was excited that the two of them would be taking this path together. For the split second he looked at Gary, he forgot about the Pokemon. He was brought back by the elder Oak, who seemed to be growing impatient with Ash and wanted him to make his decision. Ash shook his head and glanced back down at the small creatures in front of him.

Ash first took a glance at Charmander. The small fire lizard chuckled sheepishly and placed a claw on the back of it's neck. "Cute," Ash thought as he gazed over the small creature. But, no matter how cute, Ash didn't feel a strong connection with the young fire type that he knew he should have when he laid eyes on a Pokemon. Squirtle was the next to steal Ash's attention. The tiny turtle had an awfully proud look on it's face before banging it's small paw against it's shell and chanting the given name proudly. Ash stole a quick glance over at Gary. The taller brunette was staring at the tiny turtle with a mixture of curiosity and admiration. It seemed as though he made his choice on what Pokemon that he wanted. And it was well known through the town that what Gary Oak wanted, Gary Oak got. If anything, Ash didn't want to be the one who took away from Gary, who can get quite vengeful no matter how close he was to that person.

Finally, Ash's attention was taken back to the Pokemon and on the final one sitting at the end. The small creature was a minty green color with blotches of other green freckles dotting over the dinosaur like body. A large freckle matching the green Hershey Kiss look a like rested on it's back. The young Bulbasaur purred softly as Ash placed a hand on top of it's head. Ash smiled slightly and picked up his new friend. "Professor," he said, "I want this one. Bulbasaur is my choice." Bulbasaur mouth widened with glee.

The elder man smiled at the young boy. "An excellent choice that is Ash."

He looked down at the other two Pokemon. Charmander smiled, happy for his friend getting picked. But, a small hint of hurt chimed in the big blue eyes of the fire lizard. Squirtle didn't bother hiding the disappointment, slouching over in the shell. The tiny turtle continued to pout until Gary had walked up and squatted down to it's level. They looked each other in the eye before Gary nodded his head ever so slightly and looked over at his grandfather. "Him," he simply said holding out his hand for the water type's Pokeball. The water squirrel puffed its shell covered chest up with pride. At this point Charmander looked very dejected at not being chosen. Ash couldn't help but feel bad for the fire lizard. However, he knew there was going to be at least one more trainer coming today to start his journey.

"You two should be off, but before you go I have one more thing for you both," the professor said. He reached in to his coat pocket before pulling out two pieces of bright red plastic. He handed one to each new trainer before going off in to detail. "This is a Pokedex. It will help you identify and give information about each Pokemon you come across," the Professor winked at the two, "I invented it myself."

Ash looked impress with what the Professor was able to come up with. He flipped open the small device before pointing it at his new Bulbasaur.

"_Bulbasaur, the seed Pokemon, for sometime after it's birth, it grows by gaining nourishment from the seed on it's back._"

Ash quickly glanced down at Bulbasaur with an approving smile before checking through the rest of the small grass type's information to gain some new knowledge on his friend.

"You two should get going now," Ash looked up at the professor when he began to speak again, "I know that the Pokedex is interesting, but you'll have time for that later."

When Ash bid his goodbyes to the Professor, he left the room Gary hot on his heels. Before Ash was able to set foot on the ground beneath the bottom step, Gary grabbed his shoulder. "Just so you know Ashy-boy," Garys voice always had that slightly nasal undertone to it, "now that we're trainers, we are going to be rivals now. So I expect you to become strong, not that you'll ever beat me of course, but I'll need a number two when I become Champion. And that will be you."

Ash rolled his eyes at Gary's overconfidence. But, he did want to get on the road and say goodbye to his mother that day so he decided not to argue with him. "Of course Gary. I'll catch you around."

Gary smirked before heading out on to Route One. "Smell you later!" he yelled over his shoulder.

When Ash returned to his childhood home, he saw his mother standing on the front porch with her hands covering her eyes. He was confused to as of why his mother was so upset. "Mom?" he questioned.

Delia Ketchum looked up to see the hate covering the dark mop of hair on her son's head before she jumped up with glee. With tears in her eyes, she wrapped Ash in a tight hug before putting her cheek on the top of his head. "My baby!" she cried, "I'm so glad you're home!"

Ash chuckled nervously. "Mom, I was only gone for an hour." If this is how she reacted to just that amount of time, Ash inwardly cringed at what she would do when he got home from his journey.

"I thought you left without saying goodbye!" she cried out.

He rolled his eyes. His mother was the definition of drama queen. If you looked in the dictionary, her picture would be there. Ash put his arms around his mother and patted her back soothingly. "of course not Mom."

Delia let go of her son with a big smile. "Well, come on. Let me see what you chose!"

Ash smiled at her before grabbing Bulbasaur's Pokeball off of his belt. The orb snapped open when Ash tossed it in the air and a silver glow shot out. As it faded, the form of Bulbasaur took it's place. Delilah swooned as she saw the small creature. "It's so adorable!" she squealed. She bent down and pat the head of the small leafy dinosaur. Bulbasuar purred before leaning his head in to the woman's soft and comforting touch.

When Ash decided to go back home for a bit before heading off the Viridian City. He figured the his mother would want to see him and his new friend before taking off. In fact, he was sure that she would be angry with him if he didn't. But, now he was thinking that maybe that wasn't the best idea. He only planned to stay for a quick goodbye. However Delia had other plans. Ash had planned to already be on the road by now. But, Delia wouldn't let them go. More specifically she wouldn't let Bulbasaur go. She spent the first hour or two gushing over how adorable the small dinosaur was. Then decided that they (see: Bulbasaur) couldn't leave on an empty stomach. So she made the biggest lunch she could and made sure that the two of them ate slowly so they wouldn't get a cramp.

The younger man felt like he should complain about his mother's antics, but he couldn't help but to just keep smiling at the woman.

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**Ash's Team:**

**Bulbasuar (Male)**

**Pokedex Number: 001**

**Level: 5**

**Type: Grass/Poison**

**Ability: Overgrow**

**Height: 2'4"**

**Weight: 15.2 lbs**

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**This is just a re-write/repost of the same story as I put up before. I didn't like the way the first one turned out so I'm starting from scratch.**

******I wanted to write my own Pokemon "Ash is smarter" or whatever. Everyone else was doing it so why not? Before people go crazy, just because Ash didn't get Pikachu as his starter doesn't mean that Pikachu won't come in later in the series. As for traveling partners... you're just going to have to stick around to find out. And pairings? Well, it could go either way. I haven't exactly decided on who I'm going to put Ash with yet, but it won't be until way later in his journey. He still has a bit of growing up to do before he thinks about relationships. I am open to suggestions if you want to make one. Leave it in a review for me. ;)**

******I should also let you know that I could (COULD, not definite) go in the Yaoi direction. So, if you're homophobic or against homosexuality at all, kindly leave this story. Don't leave a "review" of how all "fags" should go to hell. Thanks.**

******.:EnchantingNightmares:.**


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